Technology-based economic development is our expertise. We educate individuals and organizations about Eco Commerce and assist high-potential technology businesses succeed.

Our technology commercialization programs address the financial needs of entrepreneurs and companies. We offer assistance in business planning and access to capital and finance, and with intellectual property and technology transfer issues. We leverage our existing public and private sector resources, as well as those available in the marketplace. We help businesses with high growth potential reach the next level.

Companies, especially SMEs, require financial assistance at various stages of development. Recognizing this, our experts can recommend and tailor a variety of programs for businesses and investors. During the first development stages our services include:

Business Plan Development and Refinement;

Product Development;

Research;

Strategic Initiatives and Formation;

Presentation Refinement;

Collateral Materials;

Executive Presentation.

R&D&D

Our core focus is on the second "D" for deployment. Government support can get things going, but large-scale deployment of eco innovation won't happen through subsidies alone - at least not without bankrupting the government.

So how do you get deployment up to scale? Deployment clearly needs to be driven by demand. That's where smart policy can help create a more level playing field for Eco Innovation to create the necessary demand.

Made in...?

Cheap labor and cheaper production facilities may be a decisive factor, but they are not the only reason companies consider when choosing where to locate. We focus on two key areas: intellectual property (IP) protection and being close to where the demand is.

The developed countries lead in terms of IP protection. That's, in part, why they still lead on R&D. It's also a clear draw for some companies to locate their production facilities in the developing countries.

We focus on being close to consumers. That's once again where the importance of the second “D” - deployment - comes in. The more demand there is for eco innovation, the more companies will locate their production plants in those locations as well. Note that this is distinct from cheaper production leading to more demand in the first place.

In the end, though, we must also be clear that jobs will be different in the new, cleaner economy. Other jobs will decrease, others will thrive. Underlying trade forces will mean that developing countries may well be producing many of the eco innovations sold globally. Assembling, installing, and maintaining eco innovations in the developed countries will require plenty of skilled labor. And none of these jobs can be exported.

Economic Benefits

Eco Innovation reduces environmental burden or the costs of doing so. Environmental quality is often viewed in relation to growth. For Eco Innovators there are both direct and indirect benefits:

The direct benefits for the innovator consist of:

Operational advantages such as cost savings from greater resource productivity and better logistics;

These benefits must be weighted against costs for the company. Surveys show that the majority of companies know very little of either the costs or benefits of their environmental activities. Figures on benefits from Eco Innovation are not collected by companies on their own or by statistical agencies. This leads many of them to believe that environment is a burden rather than an asset. This is an important barrier to Eco Innovation. Own or others experiences (about net benefits from eco efficiency) are instrumental in changing the mind set.

Of course, Eco Innovation should be valued from a societal point of view, not just a business point of view. From a social welfare point of view, Eco Innovation is desirable if it contributes to overall welfare in the sense of wellbeing (not economic growth). We have a net increase in welfare if the environmental benefits for society plus the benefits for companies exceed the costs of achieving those benefits (which consist of the costs for the companies involved and the administrative costs related to the use of policy instruments).

Intellectual Property is a Powerhouse for Innovation and Economic Growth

With the smart policies in place, the developed countries will keep inventing. It will also create new jobs dedicated to deployment. Developing world will play a major role in producing, but even there, smart environmental policy can only help. Smart initiatives, create new jobs; assembling, installing, and maintaining Eco Innovations.